I'm writing this as some time has gone by since the UK announced a lockdown. I'm a final year student that is about to finish her degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and I'm staying in London to brace through this storm with my flatmate.
This has been a very surreal time to say the least. From the sudden announcement that everything is moving online, to realising it would be the last time I saw many of those I cared for, the last few weeks have been experiences I never thought would manifest into reality. Nevertheless, we persevere into a new era and I am eternally grateful for all those around me, physically and virtually.
Not entirely sure how you're all coping with the change in academic scenery but my living room is certainly not the most hospitable breeding ground for productivity. Having to develop a new routine, maintain it, and find motivation to work especially under uncertainty has been a challenge to say the least. I am the first person to advocate for leaving the house bright and early and seize the day, alas this is no longer an option. But we take baby steps! I thought I’d share some tips on how I’ve tried to get accustomed to this new lifestyle that was thrust upon us.
Exercise
Thankfully we can go out once a day to do some exercise. I like to mix things up between going for a stroll, indoor exercises and running outdoors. I normally do these first thing in the morning, at lunch or before dinner (but my favourite is morning). A tip would be to integrate others to keep you motivated. For example, my flatmate and I have a challenge for how many push-ups each of us can do. We also try to stop each other from slacking off on a workout.
Loads of gyms have started giving live classes on Instagram (for free!) which is quite fun. Otherwise there’s a Nike Training app which also has loads of free videos. 10/10 would recommend. Another great app is Down Dog which has a free trial until May 1st. It has a variety of yoga, HIIT and Barre videos with a range of levels for you to try! Or there’s always YouTube.
Whatever you do, it is always great to have a little bit of activity in your day. If anything, this ‘going out to exercise once a day’ really motivated me to move about.
Cooking
Trust me when I say this, I NEVER cook. Desperate times, unfortunately, call for desperate measures. I have learnt to experiment with pots, pans, garlic, onion and spices! Despite the first couple of days where supermarkets were stripped bare, grocery shopping became exciting. Scrolling through BBC Good Food for inspiration, I found some interesting and easy recipes for batch cooking. I even ventured into trying to my own homemade yoghurt. Very happy to say it was a success!
Ultimately, this period of extended stay at home has allowed me to try something new. I strongly recommend taking advantage of this time for you to do it too!
Entertainment
My flatmate and I have started a new series together and luckily had invested in some board games for the flat before the pandemic. Netflix and Amazon Prime have also been very welcome in our flat. Tiger King and Fleabag are the current favourites. Additionally, we almost religiously watch the government’s daily broadcast in the evenings to stay on top of all new developments (Sky News on YouTube does a livestream).
We also chose to start a flat Instagram account to record our adventures during this time. Admittedly it is in early stages, but it helps alleviate some of the monotone aspects of staying indoors and try to think of new things to do.
For a less screen heavy activity, I’ve started reading more. There are virtual book clubs that are great to join for inspiration or you can start reading a book with a friend. Alternatively, there are loads of podcasts on Spotify and other apps that are great for content. I’m the biggest fan of the daily FT News Briefing.
Work
The big question. The best thing I could think of was to come up with a routine and try my best to stick to it. I chose not to defer my exams and there are still academic deadlines coming up. To ensure I continued working and meeting these commitments I created a calendar, highlighted key dates and set a series short term targets to meet over the next few weeks and months. Setting myself daily goals and set working hours has really helped. Given my flatmate works full-time but now at home, we work together so that keeps up the motivation as well. I aim to keep the evenings free for other activities and it usually synchronises with when my flatmate finishes work.
Ultimately, dividing up the day into five chunks has worked best for me:
- Chunk 1: Morning session before breakfast
- Chunk 2: Morning session post breakfast
- Chunk 3: Post lunch session
- Chunk 4: late afternoon session
- Chunk 5: Evening chill and relax period
This has helped me keep my routine and maintain some form of structure in my day.
Resting
Of course, we shouldn’t forget that this time is also great for catching up on much needed sleep and rest. Given we can no longer go out to meet friends or do other things we would normally do, we have more time to focus on ourselves, our well-being, and tuning it with what works best for us.
We need to be functioning at our best in these times of uncertainty and threats to our health. If you can spend some time reconnecting with your family, calling up old friends, sleeping in, etc. please do so! There is a silver lining to these unfortunate times, it’s just a matter of finding them and taking advantage of it!
By Andrea Solis-Olivares, LSE Undergraduate (PPE) and Digital Skills Lab Tutor